LAUSR

In this study, different TiO2 coated PES microfiltration membranes were prepared, to investigate the effects of physical deposition of the catalyst on the membrane surface on membrane fouling during model dairy wastewater filtration. The appropriate catalyst coverage, catalyst layer stability, wettability changes and surface free energies of the membrane surface were investigated. The membranes were coated using the physical deposition method: by filtering the TiO2 suspension in a dead end cell through the membrane. To investigate the membrane fouling properties, skimmed milk powder solution was used. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activity of the TiO2 coated membranes under UV irradiation (λmax = 254 nm) and its effect on the filterability of the model solution were investigated. Membrane flux and fouling were measured and calculated. It was found that the fouling propensity of the membrane is highly determined by not only the structure of the TiO2 covering but also the hydrophilicity of the surface and the chemical nature of the contaminants: a less hydrophilic membrane is prone to be more resistant to fouling by more polar degradation by-products, and in addition the membrane fouling property can be determined by surface free energies.